Real Unemployment Rate For Young Americans Is 22.9%

The Wall Street Journal reports that the real unemployment rate for young Americans is a miserable 22.9%. They’re counting those who are actively seeking employment as well as those who have dropped out of the labor market. So much for the American dream.

22.9%: The unemployment rate for Americans under age 25, adjusting for the decline in the labor force since the start of the recession.

Perhaps no group has been hit harder by the recession and grinding recovery than the young. The official unemployment rate for those under age 25 is 16.2%, more than double the rate for the population as a whole. In percentage terms, unemployment has fallen far more slowly for young people than for the wider population.

Those figures actually understate the severity of the problem, however. The government only considers people “unemployed” if they’re actively looking for work. People who stop looking—whether they’re retired, in school, raising a family or living on friends’ couches — are instead considered “not in the labor force,” even if they would prefer to work given the opportunity. (Read More)

It’s almost as bad as it is in Europe. The number of young Americans in the labor market has dropped to 54.2% from 59.2% in 2007. What’s amazing is that the Democrats continue getting the votes from these kids while they’re policies are destroying their future.

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Tags: americans, unemployment, young, youth